A couple who run a Subway takeaway in Wellington have been ordered to pay more than £13,000 over a cockroach infestation that led to its temporary closure last year.
Gurdeep and Simmerjit Sandhar, operate Subway in Market Square and appeared before Shropshire Magistrates sitting at Telford Justice Centre yesterday.
The court heard officers from Telford & Wrekin Council visited the takeaway in July last following a complaint from a member of the public that a cockroach climbed onto the food preparation surface while a member of staff was making a sandwich for another customer. The complainant said the staff member knocked the cockroach onto the floor and carried on.
During their inspection of the premises, the council’s officers found sticky insect pads under the front counter with dead and live cockroaches, more sticky pads with live cockroaches, food debris and mouse droppings underneath the front counter and pheromone traps containing German cockroaches and live coackroaches running around underneath the sandwich counter which contained foods at high risk of infection such as cheese, ham, salami and salads. Inspectors found that the standard of cleaning was poor.
A Hygiene Emergency Prohibition Notice was served on the same day as the inspection. The following week a Hygiene Prohibition Order was granted by magistrates. As a result the shop was closed for one month from 16 July 2018.
In court yesterday, Mr and Mrs Sandhar each pleaded guilty to three charges under the Food Safety and Hygiene (England) Regulations 2013. They were individually fined £1,760 for each separate offence and each ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £170. In addition, they were ordered to pay costs to Telford & Wrekin Council of £2,230 bringing the total of fines and costs for the couple to £13,130.
Councillor Richard Overton, Telford & Wrekin Council’s Cabinet Member for Enforcement, said:
“I welcome the sentence handed down by the court today for it shows the importance of the issue of food hygiene and the importance of the work our officers do about it. We do all we can to ensure the safety of the public we serve and that’s why our officers moved quickly to temporarily close the shop last year.”
In a statement, a subway spokesperson said:
“Operating with strict hygiene standards is a mandatory requirement for any Subway® store. The franchise owner has confirmed that prior to its temporary closure in July 2018, the store held a FSA food hygiene rating of 5 (Very Good) continuously for 10 years.
“Since reopening in August 2018, strict cleaning standards have been maintained to ensure excellent hygiene and there have been no pest control issues. As a result, the store was awarded a FSA food hygiene rating of 4 (Good) in March 2019.
“The franchise owner is committed to making continuous improvement so valued customers can have complete trust in their Subway experience.”